Grading in a Differentiated Classroom
5. Involve students in student-led parent conferences. Asking students to be a part of
goalsetting with you, to keep track of their work and how it demonstrates their growth, and to communicate this information to parents can be powerful for everyone. It helps students develop responsibility for and a voice about their own work. It helps you and parents hear the same student messages about what’s work- ing and what isn’t. It makes much clearer than you can alone why it matters to have work that matches student needs. It also addresses the reality that learning itself is learned, and that students who have cooperative teacher-
parent partners in finding an optimum learning match are fortunate indeed.
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Fourten-year-old Kathleen wrote a poem a number of years ago. She was a high-ability learner who seldom found a serious reason to extend her academic reach in school. Then she encountered a teacher who caused her to find new power in herself. At the end of that school year, Kathleen wrote a poem to her teacher. On some level, it expresses the need of all stu- dents—and all humans—to push their own limits. It certainly describes Kathleen’s acknowl- edgement of what it was like for her when that need was fulfilled. Her words also seem to express her clear sense of the role her teacher had played in that magical year, as the teacher saw Kathleen and dealt with her as an individual.
Push me! See how far I go!
Work me ’til I drop. Then pick me up.
Open a door, and then make me run to it before it closes.
Teach me so that I might learn, Then let me enter the tunnel of
experience alone.
And when, near the end,
I turn to see you beginning another’s journey,
I shall smile.
A Final Thought
Appendix
A Few Instructional and Management Strategies for Differentiated,Mixed-Ability Classrooms (continued on next page) A 3-step process that (1) assesses what a student knows about material to be studied and what the student still needs to master, (2) plans for learning what is not known and excuses student from what is known, and (3) plans for freed-up time to be spent in enriched or accelerated study.• Recognizes large reservoir of knowledge in some learners • Satisfies hunger to learn more about more topics than school often allows • Encourages independence • Eliminates boredom and lethargy resulting from unnecessary drill and practice
• Explain the process and its benefits to students and parents • Pre-assess learner’s knowledge and documents findings • Allow student much choice in use of time “bought” through previous mastery • Use written plans and time lines for accelerated or enrichment study • Can use group compacting for several students
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Compacting
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STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Compacting
Appendix
A Few Instructional and Management Strategies for Differentiated,Mixed-Ability Classrooms—continued (continued on next page)
A process through which student and teacher identify problems or topics of interest to the student. Both student and teacher plan a method of investigating the problem or topic and identifying the type of product the student will develop. This product should address the problem and demonstrate the student’s ability to apply skills and knowledge to the problem or topic.
• Builds on student interest • Satisfies curiosity • Teaches planning and research skills at advanced levels • Encourages independence • Allows work with complex and abstract ideas • Allows long-term and in-depth work on topics of interest • Taps into high motivation
• Build on student interest • Allow the student maximum freedom to plan, based on student readiness for freedom • Teacher provides guidance and structure to supplement student capacity to plan and to ensure high standards of production • Use preset time lines to zap procrastination • Use process logs to document the process involved throughout the study • Establish criteria for success
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Independent Projects
A Few Instructional and Management Strategies for Differentiated,Mixed-Ability Classrooms—continued (continued on next page)
Interest centers (often used with younger learners) and interest groups (often used with older learners) can provide enrichment for students who demonstrate mastery/competence with required work and can be a vehicle for providing these students with meaningful study when required assignments are completed. In addition, all learners enjoy and need the opportunity to work with interest centers/groups in order to pursue areas of special interest to them. These centers/groups can be differentiated by level of complexity and independence required, as well as by student interest, to make them accessible and appropriately challenging for all learners.
• Allows student choice • Taps into student interest— motivating • Satisfies curiosity—explores hows and whys • Allows study of topics not in the regular curriculum • Can allow for study in greater breadth and depth • Can be modified for student readiness • Can encourage students to make connections between fields of study or between study and life
• Build on student interest • Encourage students to help you develop interest-based tasks • Adjust for student readiness • Allow students of like interests to work together • Develop clear (differentiated) criteria for success • For advanced learners, allow long blocks of time for work, change centers less often to allow for depth of study, make certain tasks are challenging
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Interest Centers or Interest Groups
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A 3-step process that (1) assesses what a student knows about material to be studied and what the student still needs to master, (2) plans for learning what is not known and excuses student from what is known, and (3) plans for freed-up time to be spent in enriched or accelerated study.
• Recognizes large reservoir of knowledge in some learners • Satisfies hunger to learn more about more topics than school often allows • Encourages independence • Eliminates boredom and lethargy resulting from unnecessary drill and practice
• Explain the process and its benefits to students and parents • Pre-assess learner’s knowledge and documents findings • Allow student much choice in use of time “bought” through previous mastery • Use written plans and time lines for accelerated or enrichment study • Can use group compacting for several students
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Compacting
Appendix
A Few Instructional and Management Strategies for Differentiated,Mixed-Ability Classrooms—continued (continued on next page)
In a heterogeneous classroom, a teacher uses varied levels of activities to ensure that students explore ideas at a level that builds on their prior knowledge and prompts continued growth. Student groups use varied approaches to exploration of essential ideas.
• Blends assessment and instruction • Allows students to begin learning from where they are • Allows students to work with appropriately challenging tasks • Allows for reinforcement or extension of concepts and principles based on student readiness • Allows modification of working conditions based on learning style • Avoids work that is anxiety- producing (too hard) or boredom- producing (too easy) • Promotes success and is therefore motivating
• Be sure the task is focused on a key concept or generalization essential to the study • Use a variety of resource materials at differing levels of complexity and associated with different learning modes • Adjust the task by complexity, abstractness, number of steps, concreteness, and independence to ensure appropriate challenge • Be certain there are clear criteria for quality and success
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Tiered Assignments
Appendix — continued
Appendix — continued
A Few Instructional and Management Strategies for Differentiated,Mixed-Ability Classrooms—continued Students are part of many different groups—and also work alone— based on the match of the task to student readiness, interest, or learning style. Teachers may create skills-based or interest-based groups that are heterogeneous or homogeneous in readiness level. Sometimes students select work groups, and sometimes teachers select them. Sometimes student group assignments are purposeful and sometimes random.• Allows both for quick mastery of information/ideas and need for additional exploration by students needing more time for mastery • Allows both collaborative and independent work • Gives students and teachers a voice in work arrangements • Allows students to work with a wide variety of peers • Encourages teachers to “try out” students in a variety of work settings • Keeps students from being “pegged” as advanced or struggling • Keeps students from being cast as those in need of help and those who are helpers
• Ensure that all students have opportunities to work both with students most like themselves and with students dissimilar from themselves in readiness and interest • Teacher assigns work groups when task is designed to match individual readiness/interest based on pre-assessment or teacher knowledge • Teacher assigns work groups when desirable to ensure that students work with a variety of classmates • Students select groups when task is well-suited for peer selection • Alternate purposeful assignment to groups with teacher/student selection • Ensure that all students learn to work cooperatively, collaboratively, and independently • Be sure there are clear guidelines for group functioning that are taught in advance of group work and consistently reinforced
Flexible Grouping
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE (continued on next page)
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Appendix — continued
A 3-step process that (1) assesses what a student knows about material to be studied and what the student still needs to master, (2) plans for learning what is not known and excuses student from what is known, and (3) plans for freed-up time to be spent in enriched or accelerated study.• Recognizes large reservoir of knowledge in some learners • Satisfies hunger to learn more about more topics than school often allows • Encourages independence • Eliminates boredom and lethargy resulting from unnecessary drill and practice
• Explain the process and its benefits to students and parents • Pre-assess learner’s knowledge and documents findings • Allow student much choice in use of time “bought” through previous mastery • Use written plans and time lines for accelerated or enrichment study • Can use group compacting for several students
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Compacting
Appendix
AA Few Instructional and Management Strategies for Differentiated,Mixed-Ability Classrooms—continued (continued on next page)
Learning centers can be “stations” or collections of materials learners use to explore topics or practice skills. Teachers can adjust learning center tasks to readiness levels or learning styles of different students.
• Allows matching task with learner’s skills level • Encourages continuous development of student skills • Allows matching task with student learning style • Enables students to work at appropriate pace • Allows teacher to break class into practice and direct instruction groups at a given time • Helps develop student independence
• Match task to learner readiness, interest, learning style • Avoid having all learners do all work at all centers • Teach students to record their own progress at centers • Monitor what students do and what they understand at centers • Have clear directions and clear criteria for success at centers
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Learning Centers
A Few Instructional and Management Strategies for Differentiated,Mixed-Ability Classrooms—continued In class discussions and on tests, teachers vary the sorts of questions posed to learners based on their readiness, interests, and learning styles.
• All students need to be accountable for information and thinking at high levels • Some students will be challenged by a more basic thought question • Others will be challenged by a question that requires speed of response, large leaps of insight, or making remote connections • Teachers can “try out” students with varied sorts of questions as one means of assessing student progress and readiness • Varying questions appropriately helps nurture motivation through success • In oral settings, all students can hear and learn from a wide range of responses
• Target some questions to particular students and “open the floor” to others • Use open-ended questions where possible • Use wait time before taking answers • When appropriate, give students a chance to talk with thinking partners before giving answers • Encourage students to build on one another’s answers • Require students to explain and defend their answers • Adjust the complexity, abstractness, degree of mental leap required, time constraints, connections required between topics, and so forth, based on learning profile of the student being asked a question
Varying Questions
Appendix — continued
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE (continued on next page)` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` ` `
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Compacting
Appendix
Appendix — continued
A Few Instructional and Management Strategies for Differentiated,Mixed-Ability Classrooms—continued (continued on next page)Students work with a resource teacher, media specialist, parent volunteer, older student, or community member who can guide their growth in a particular area. Some mentorships may focus on design and execution of advanced projects, some on exploration of particular work settings, some on affective development, and some on combinations of goals.
• Mentorships extend learning beyond the classroom • Mentorships make learning a partnership • Mentorships can help students expand awareness of future options and how to attain them • Mentorships allow teachers to tap into student interest, strengths, and needs • Mentorships have a low teacher- to-learner ratio (often one-to-one)
• Match the mentor with the student’s needs (interests, strengths, culture, gender) • Be clear in your own mind and specific about the goals of the collaboration • Make sure roles of mentor, student, teacher, and parent are written and agreed upon • Provide appropriate preparation and instruction for mentors, including key information about the student • Monitor the progress of the mentorship regularly and help problem solve if snags occur • Connect what is learned in the mentorship to what goes on in class whenever feasible
STRATEGYDESCRIPTION OF STRATEGYRATIONALE FOR USEGUIDELINES FOR USE Mentorships/ Apprentice- ships
A Few Instructional and Management Strategies for Differentiated,Mixed-Ability Classrooms—continued Contracts take a number of forms that begin with an agreement between student and teacher: The teacher grants certain freedoms and choices about how a student will complete tasks, and the student agrees to use the freedoms appropriately in designing and completing work according to specifications.
• Can blend skill- and content- based learning matched to student’s need • Eliminates unnecessary skill practice for students • Allows students to work at appropriate pace • Helps students learn planning and decision-making skills important for independence as learners • Allows teachers time to work with individuals and small groups • Can encourage extended study on topics of interest • Can foster research, critical and creative thinking, application of skills, and integrated learning
• Blend both skill- and content- based learning in the contract • Match skills to readiness of the learner • Match content to readiness, interests, and learning style of student • Allow student choice, especially in content-based portions of the contract • From the outset, establish clear and challenging standards for success • Provide rules for the contract in writing • When possible, focus the contract on concepts, themes, or problems, and integrate appropriate skills into required projects or products • Vary levels of student independence and time span of the contract to match student readiness
Contracts
Appendix — continued
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